Gundam LEAP!
by Bean Bandit
Summary: Self inserted hero? Given a mighty Gundam and becoming a legend? I wish. Rather, I was turned into a girl. And not just any girl, but the most reviled of the series. And so begins the quest to not only clear the name of Fllay Alster, but make it my own.


Author's notes: Yeah, Yeah. SI, Cliche. . ; Hopefully not as bad as one might think. I've tried to put a newish spin on this, but I'm not sure how it went. Hopefully this isn't too terrible, despite the fact that I didn't turn it into any beta readers. Let me know if this is at all serviceable as a prologue. Ideas for where to take this are welcome, too. I have Ideas, but I'm not too proud to use ones that I like. Anyway. Gundam SEED Belongs to Sunrise, I own no one who appears here but myself, etc, etc. Read on!

Bzzt-Scratch-SHH

_Dammit, how does this thing work again? Stupid therapist. _

Bling! Edutainment Vocorder Terminal type NX3 running. Welcome to Windows 70

_There we go. _

_Okay, Menus, menus...Music, Internet, Ah, here, dictation. _

Testing, testing...

Playback: Testing, Testing.

_No, I don't want to hear my own voice. Convert it to text, you stupid thing. _

Font:Times New Roman.

_Better._

_Okay, and...there. Switch on! _

Testing, Testing. Oh, good. This thing is working, finally. Sorry, just give me a moment to get my thoughts together, and I'll start.

Okay, I'm ready.

I should tell you, I'm not so good at this. I've been going to a therapist, and she's kind of annoyed I won't tell her my story. My stubborness is second to none, though. She finally laid off, but made me promise to tell someone, even if it's only this recorder, here. And you, whoever you are. I don't know if anyone will ever hear this...I don't know if I could even stand for anyone to know. I do need to get it off my chest, though. So I'm sitting here, alone and curled up on my couch, trying to figure out how to tell this story. You probably won't believe me. I don't believe it myself, even though it was my life ripped apart and stitched back together in a chaotic, unrecognizable mess.

That a juicy enough hint to get you hooked? Well, good.

I think.

I should start by introducing myself. If you've found this, you know by the registry who it belongs to. And yes, that's me. Though that wasn't always my name. I used to be called Bean. I had a 'real' name, but that had become my nickname, and for all practical purposes, it -was- my identity.

I was painfully ordinary, much as I might have wished otherwise. Twenty-odd years old, an unrepentant anime freak, and working a pretty good job at a local grocery store. I worked nights, and made enough money to live without the stereotypical poverty of a single guy. Lest you get the wrong idea, let me clarify a bit. Any lady listeners...sorry, readers. I'm forgetting I'm getting this typed as I talk. Anyway, permit me a bit of conceit in imagining myself adequate looking. It's been awhile, and I remember that I suffered from depression, and thought I was rather horribly ugly, but people I trust assured me otherwise. Six feet, one inch, about a hundred and ninety pounds. I liked to play hockey and a few other sports. I also was into collecting swords and oddball weapons, video games, and Archery.

Though, as I said, I suffered from depression. Without the assistance of some people dear to me, I likely would have ended my own life long before the events you're about to read of. It's not relevant to the story...yet, save for the fact that due to this mental state, I lived a good portion of my life online. Talking to friends, Anime and the Internet took up the largest chunk of my time, but it was nice. Solitary recreation, but it worked for me.

You ever think about things being 'different'? Me either. I mean, I had an active fantasy life, but as to changing my own life, it was just too much work.

Fate decided otherwise, though.

I was at home. No work, and my online friends were doing other things. I work nights, and sleep during the day, so my bedroom window was blacked out. That's why I didn't notice the 'event' at first. I was sitting at the computer by my bedside, posting to an online Role Playing Game.

It was only when I turned away to my manga shelf to find something more to kill time with, that a glittering blue light intruded on the corner of my vision. I looked up to see what it was, and my eyes were treated to a peculiar, eerie sight.

Bandit Productions Presents

A Bean Fanfic

'Quantum SEED'

The doorway into my living room was filled with an beautiful, unearthly light, blues and whites streaming by in a coruscating flow, straight and true, unbending in their flight. I don't really know what I was thinking at that point. I stood up slowly, my heart pounding a little, and picked up a bokken I keep beside my bed, and began inching into my living room.

As I came out into the room, nothing dramatic had occurred, really. My TV and bookcases and furniture were all in one piece, and even the clock on my DVD player was even still functioning well. Everything I owned was blithely ignoring the fact that it looked as though my apartment was being pelted by thousands of tiny blue ray guns. I looked down, and sure enough, the arrows of blue light were impacting me, too, to little noticeable effect. I held my breath, waiting...but nothing happened. After several moments of tense anticipation, I began to calm down a little, looking more closely at what was causing this...whatever it was. I moved further out into the living room, examining the dapples of blue light splashing everything, I looked around, and quickly determined that the light was streaming in from outside, and getting in through the windows, somehow filling all the space, instead of casting shadows.

Startling and weird, definitely, but I had already determined that I seemed to be in little danger, so this didn't bother me as much as it could have... or probably should have, really. Curious what was going on outside, I went to my apartment's door, and let myself out, locking the heavy numbered door behind me before jogging down the hall, and to the stairs that lead to the lobby.

Bounding up the stairs, I noticed the blue light again, though it wasn't surprising that it reached here, as the front doors to my building were made of glass. Sure enough, when I got to the top of the stairs and looked to the doors, all the scenery outside was painted by the streaming blue light. Cars in the parking lot, the grass, trees, the concrete walkway-everything- was painted with an azure tint. I was almost in a trance as I walked to the glass doors, looking out over the scene, stunned.

The strangest thing is that I could see people moving about outside. Walking dogs, driving cars...no one seemed to even noticed that the earth had become entirely blue and white.

"Amazing..." I breathed to myself, pushing open the door to see the light directly. I stepped out into the light, taking a few steps into it when I started to feel strange. An odd, breathtaking pulling sensation began crawling up my body, starting with my feet. It was only then that I realized coming outside may not have been the brightest thing I ever did. I tried to turn, to run, but it clung to my legs, freezing me in place. I flailed my arms, crying out desperately for help, but with shocking speed, the pulling overtook my arms, shoulders, neck and head, and I was caught fast, and the sensation of being pulled overwhelmed me entirely, until my vision was overcome by a final, intense splash of the blue light...

...it might have lasted a split second, or only centuries, but there was a distinct feeling of being pushed. The blue light seemed to stab into my mind, and a spray of vertigo ensued-

The light was blinding, white on blue, a starburst-like flare as my world exploded...

_**There was a terrifying feeling of nothing. A void. I tried to scream, but I had no voice, but-**_

...The explosion seemed to reverse itself, a scattered starfield of white pinpricks beginning to streak to a single point, and my awareness returned, black giving way to light, then light taking on form and substance as reality returned, and with disorienting abruptness, the blue faded from my eyes, and everything was different.

I was...elsewhere. Not outside my apartment, Not looking at the sky anymore. I was in a room, filled with kids almost half my age.

Room might be a bit misleading, though. It was a nice place, decorated in soft greens, and with a slightly rounded design, as if the architects were trying to compensate for the atmosphere with a pleasant design. It was filled with tables and benches, if it hadn't been for the colors, the 'cafeteria' atmosphere would have been decidedly sterile. I was standing beside a counter built into a hole in the wall, with a tray of food steaming merrily on the counter. (It smelled great. I was strangely hungry.) In beyond the counter, there was another room, tiny white, clean looking but less pleasant. It looked like a small kitchen, really.

I started looking around the room, trying to take in more details, and beginning to note that I felt... odd. Something was changed somehow that I couldn't immediately put my finger on. I was about to address that mystery, shifting my gaze, and my eyes fell on other eyes staring back at me. I glanced to my right, and three of the kids looked at me, staring at me with emotions I couldn't easily read. They were all boys, dressed in slick looking blue and white uniforms that struck me as vaguely familiar. The one farthest back seemed the most upset, staring at me with a positively appalled expression.

Now, I'm not very good with people. Even worse when I'm the center of attention. My first reaction was to blush. I could feel my face burning, and the odd feeling that I knew the uniforms from somewhere tickled at my mind, but didn't seem particularly important. I took an uneasy step backward, about to explain and apologize for intruding when my eyes fell on the girl.

She was young... much younger than I. Probably about the same age as the boys, she seemed an entirely different breed. Slender and pretty, she had a strangely graceful air of dignity about her, despite wearing a dress that looked like it belonged in a cosplay contest. It was a modest, but reasonably fancy affair with a purple skirt, and an oddly tailored, futuristic looking white top made her look sophisticated and innocent all at once, and I could feel my face burning a little as she looked at me, and an odd tightness beginning in my chest. What was most striking about her was the soft pink hair, well groomed and held in place by a single, distinctive gold barrette. _Get ahold of yourself, Bean, she's just a teenager... _I looked again, and she was holding out her hand, expectantly, with a slightly hurt expression on her face. My hands were behind my back, and I was leaning away from her.

"Ah, I'm s-sorry about all this..." I stammered, and impulsively, I grabbed her hand and shook it, carefully. The reaction was immediate, and startling, as though someone had taken a pin and popped the air of tension in the room. The boys all sighed with relief, but it was the boy in the back who actually said anything, sighing something that sounded like 'Fray...' I wondered what exactly that meant, looking back to the girl, all of this seeming so oddly familiar to me, and adding to my uneasiness.

The girl looked briefly confused, but not long enough for me to react as her face suddenly bloomed into a sunny smile, and she seized my hand, and shook it with surprising force. "As I was saying, my name is Lacus-"

Have you ever had that feeling, where something was not quite right, but you can't figure out what, but suddenly, something happens, and everything sort of clicks into place, and everything fits together, and it feels like a divinely granted epiphany? That's what happened to me when Lacus Clyne told me her name when we greeted for the first time. The disorientation and confusion melted away, replaced by an unpleasant and startling clarity.

She didn't actually stop speaking, but that was all I heard, her words turning into a dim droning in my mind as I looked down, really LOOKING at my outstretched arm. Encased in a soft pink cloth, my arm was slimmer than I remembered, my hand smaller. It fit comfortably into Lacus' hand instead of dwarfing it, like it should have. I looked up at the boys, the pieces all tumbling together in my mind.

Kira. Tolle. That black haired one who's name I could never remember. Lacus...And behind me...

I looked over my shoulder to see if I could find Millaria Haww, but before I even saw her, I was utterly distracted by the swish of long red hair shifting to accommodate my head.

_Oh god...I'm not even me anymore. He wasn't saying 'Fray', he was saying a name.-MY- name. Fllay. _

"Oh boy..." I whispered, and that was all I got out, before my eyes rolled up in my head, and consciousness fled.

_There's no place like home. There's no place like-Dammit Toto, the tin man is NOT a fire Hydrant!_

_Goddammit, this blue dress and braids doesn't really suit me-wait, what? _

It was all a dream, and I was in my bed at home. At least, that's what I was hoping. No blue lights, no ludicrously improbable juxtaposition into a fictional universe (And into a teenage girl at that! I had to be dreaming this all. Definitely had issues, I did. Where would one find a shrink for something like this?) and definitely no spaceship. Voices lulled me from my half delerious musings and disturbing dreams. They weren't familiar, and my eyes snapped open in alarm as I began to shift around to get up.

This was a mistake on several levels as it had three decidedly unpleasant effects. First, opening my eyes revealed an unfamiliar ceiling. (10 points if you get the joke!) Secondly, shifting around drew my attention sharply to the fact that something was -seriously- wrong with my body. Things were entirely too small and soft for my liking, and the hair...

I wasn't given the luxury of contemplating that for long, as my movements drew the attention of the sources of the voices, and I was surrounded by concerned faces with startling speed. The crush of people was a bit overwhelming, and they were all talking at once-I cringed as I tried to sort out the mess of voices. Concerned though they may have been, the utter surrealness of the situation was putting me on edge, as now that I was seeing who they were, translating their anime looks to real, breathing people came more and more naturally.

Probably the most alarming of the entire situation was the concerned looking guy with small, tinted glasses and short cropped sandy hair, that was readily identifiable as Sai Argyle. He was fussing over me worriedly and touching my forehead in a way that hinted at far more intimacy than I was comfortable with. I tried not to shiver at another guy touching me that way, but thankfully, something else came along to distract me. It was almost dizzying how fast things were happening.

"All right, break it up, or I'll kick you all out! Give her some room!" The speaker was a man I didn't know. He was tall and dignified, with dark brown hair and a lab coat, the beginnings of frown lines appearing around his mouth. Very much the stereotype of a handsome middle aged doctor-I felt a slight pang of worry at that thought, but it was pushed to the side rather quickly. The group of kids backed off, parting to allow him access to me, and revealing Lacus again, who, judging by the way she moved away from the doctor when the way was cleared had been the one to bring him upon my wakening.

He approached the bed slowly, the frown turning into a smile all the while. He had an excellent, practiced beside manner, which did absolutely nothing to alleviate my growing hysteria over this whole situation. Pulling up a stool to the bed I was lying on, he gently pushed me back to the bed. "How do you feel, Miss Alster?" His voice was quiet, and had a slightly coaxing tone that grated on my nerves as he checked my forehead for heat, then took my wrist, resting too large fingers on it to check my pulse.

"Me? I'm fine-" I tried to insist, once I remembered who I was supposed to be, but apparently whatever my pulse was hadn't pleased him, and he lightly grasped my head, and I yelped as his fingers plunged into my hair and brushed the scalp underneath, and a sparkle of intense pain flashed through my eyes as his fingers found a tender spot. "OW!" I shrieked, pulling away.

He allowed me to yank myself free, frowning a little down at me. "That's quite a goose egg, but it still doesn't explain the fainting you described." The Doctor looked up and to his side...it took a minute for my eyes to focus on who it was, mostly because I was busy glaring at the doctor, and trying to resist the urge to rub the newly identified sore spot.

"She banged her head on the table when she fell, Doctor." The pain eased away, and I could make out a one of the boys from the cafeteria. Shaggy brown hair, and purple eyes with a nervous, concerned expression. Kira Yamato. Hero of 'Gundam SEED', and notorious crybaby. _That's probably not really fair, Bean. _I told myself dizzily. I'd liked Kira when I'd seen the anime. _He's just a kid. _

_Just a kid who's kinda head over heels for the girl who's body you co-opted, smart guy. _My mind shot back, and I squirmed inwardly at the thought, though no one seemed to notice my consternation. Kira went on, "But before she fainted, she seemed confused, and..." He trailed off uneasily, but the doctor didn't seem to mind.

Nodding seriously, the he turned back to me, fishing a small flashlight from his pocket. Flicking it on and jamming it in my eyes, he hummed thoughtfully, oblivious to me personally. "Ow! Hey!" I complained, but was summarily ignored. The light flicked off, leaving me with a dazzling display of spots decorating my vision.

"Well, She doesn't even seem to be too affected by the blow, and even less by...whatever it is you're describing." I couldn't see him at the moment with my eyes sparkling like that, but the doctor sounded irritatingly clinical. "I did a quick exam while she was out, and she's in remarkable health, though she could probably use a bit of exercise."

"I'm right here, you know." I replied tartly as rubbed my eyes. Still, my complaint seemed to go unheard.

"You have no idea what caused it?" I didn't recognize that voice, but I was too busy rubbing my eyes to care at the moment.

"I'm afraid not. My guess would be Psychological stress, considering all she and the other passengers have been through. The best I can do for you is to is to tell you to keep a close eye on her, and bring her in if it happens again. Maybe see to it that she has something to do about ship. I know young girls can be rather vain about muscles-" A soft, feminine 'humph' interrupted him there, and I silently cheered whoever that was as the light receded from my eyes. "-but getting her blood flowing will probably help alleviate stress, and improve her temperament, if the rumors I'm hearing are correct."

"Not that it's any of your-"

"Sai, that's not important."

"Anyway." The doctor interjected, sounding amused. His back was to me as my eyes finally cleared fully addressing the assembled group. Kira and Sai were taking the doctor the most seriously. A slight chill crawled up my spine as it occurred to me that if I really WAS Fllay, Sai was supposed to be my...no. I wouldn't think about that. Fortunately, I was able to distract myself, as Lacus and another girl, dressed in an pink uniform in the same cut as the boys. A VERY cute look, short brown hair in a flipped style, and slim figure under the pink tunic and miniskirt made a definite impression. Had to be Millaria Haww, I figured, letting my eyes wander down to rest on her-Ack! She turned around, nearly catching me ogling her rear end, giving me a worried look. Blushing, I looked away... and into Lacus' eyes, who was mirroring 'Milly's concern.

I felt my face getting hotter and redder under their scrutiny, and just ducked my head to twiddle my fingers nervously in my lap. _This can't be happening. Real people don't get sucked into Anime. _I thought my musings had taking on a slightly delirious edge.

"...And she should be fine. Just watch what she eats, and keep her busy, but for now, take her to her quarters, and let her sleep off that lump." The doctor finished, and they all nodded in unison, looking at me in a way that made me cringe, but fortunately, the doctor rescued me, this time. "Just the girls, you guys." He instructed briskly. "She's already high strung enough."

Tolle and that black haired boy (What WAS his name?) nodded acceptingly, and Kira and Sai looked distinctly less likely to obey, but the girls stepped in, and firmly shooed the boys out.

Something had gone wrong. Or possibly right. I wasn't at all certain what had happened, but this was far off course for 'Gundam Seed', at least as I remembered the anime. Milly and Lacus had taken me from the infirmary, and led me through a near labyrinth of metal corridors. The yellow tones to the halls were interesting, and I kept careful track of where we were going as they led me through the ship.

The girls didn't really talk much as we walked, both of them keeping a watchful eye on me. Back in the infirmary, I would have enjoyed this...maybe. But since I was a glutton for punishment, I folded my hands in front of me, as discreetly as I could manage, trying not to let Millaira and Lacus see what I was doing, and began...Um. How to put this?

Well, suffice it to say, I was shocked to find myself the victim of a large amount of elective surgery, or an elaborate practical joke. Having been decidedly male since I was born, despite appearances, I still felt myself to be so, and I was hoping to prove it, by locating a specific part of my anatomy.

I suppose I actually expected what would happen, but it was still a shock to press my folded hands down discreetly to brush against the manhood that SHOULD have been there, and coming in contact with nothing but the fabric of the disturbingly pink outfit I was wearing, and a flat surface underneath. And this is not even mentioning the fact that pushing my arms together like that made me uncomfortably aware of the fact the front of the dress was filled out quite fully with soft flesh that was decidedly all 'me'.

Let me tell you, there are few things in life as utterly demoralizing as finding yourself abruptly bereft of the services of 'you know what', if you catch my drift. _Gone. All gone..._I whimpered inwardly. I ducked my head to avoid making my distress plain to my guides, and unclasped my hands and let them hang at my sides, images of a tiny Bean wearing a black armband and weeping over a disturbing flag at half mast dancing through my head.

"Fllay?" Milly asked suddenly, and I jerked my head up quickly, startled.

"What?"

"Are you ok?" She asked softly, her expression concerned. I was actually touched, really. Not so much that I was deterred from obsessing, but she did wake me up, a little.

"Just...a little out of it, right now." I tried to assure her, and she nodded, smiling-and took my hand! She squeezed it as she began to lead me more directly, and I could FEEL the temperature in my face rising as she looked forward again. I looked around quickly to try and distract myself, and fortunately, or unfortunately, I suppose, there were other new and disturbing things to take up my attention.

First...I was not wearing any pants.

Stop laughing. Seriously!

Air was creeping up my legs as I walked. This was disconcerting enough, but the skirt...I looked down and tried my best not to sigh, even though I wanted to hide. I'd been wearing this the whole time?

My clothes were pink. -Very- pink. Not only that, but it was a pink -dress-. Soft fabric and by the looks of it, expensive-and not an ugly dress, either, by any means. Not that this mattered. What DID matter, was that it was wrapped around MY body!

Worse yet, it looked like it belonged there. My chest stuck out, filling out the front of the offending garment in an appealing way-that is, appealing if I was watching someone else wear it. On myself, contemplating the newly acquired topography to my chest made me feel the beginnings of a nasty twitch, so I forced myself to look up and away, ignoring the dress, the movements of my hair as we walked, and most -definitely- ignoring the faint bouncing up front with every step.

Luckily for me, the girls didn't seem to see anything notable about the focus of my attention, and let me be as we finally came to a door that Milly stopped at. Lacus seemed to be following her lead, and I obediently mimicked my guides. The door swished open, and the ushered me inside.

Despite any protests, they seemed rather determined to fuss over me. Millaria gently but firmly pushed me to the bunk. "Lay down." She instructed

"Ah...Right..." I managed, awkwardly sitting-then standing, rearranging the idiotic dress before sitting again, and Milly gently pushed me to lay down, Lacus remaining behind her, a little nervously, watching the proceedings. I sort of flopped onto the bunk, which turned out to be a mistake as my head hit the altogether-too-firm pillow. A blaze of heat lanced my skull as I apparently found the goose-egg again. "Ow!" I whimpered, clutching at my head through a sea of soft red hair. How hard had I smashed my head, anyway?

"Fllay!" Milly exclaimed, perching on the edge of the bed, reaching over to move my hands away from my head. Her fingers slipped into my hair to brush the bump lightly, which made me flinch, and she gasped. "That lump is HUGE!"

"I'll go get a cloth." Lacus offered, and when Milly nodded, the pink haired girl swished off to another area of the cabin in a rustle of purple skirts, and I was left, flat on my back, and staring up while a cute girl attended to my abused head. This sounds much worse than it really is, because Milly's position left certain parts of her right in my field of vision, and I happily ogled while I could, enjoying the attention-ow. Okay, enjoying it as much as the circumstances would allow.

Abruptly, Milly leaned back, and pulled her breasts out of my field of vision, and I had to fight off the urge to pout. Still, Lacus was there, and she proffered a damp cloth to me. I accepted, and winced at the cool, wet feeling in my hand, moving it to press against the masses of red hair covering my damaged (borrowed) head. Almost immediately the worst of the sting faded, and the girls seemed to notice.

"Fllay? Are you all right?" Millaria inquired. "You've hardly said two words since the mess hall-?"

"I guess so?" I jumped as the words left my mouth, and I heard myself, -really- heard, for the first time. No one's voice sounds the same inside their head as it does outside, but my voice had changed. Not much of a surprise, really, nor even the most notable of my current changes. "Maybe a little tired..." I added uncertainly.

"That's no surprise." Lacus surprised us both by speaking up, she had been rather quiet. "You've had a stressful day." She added kindly, watching me as I looked to her. _What business does a girl so young have looking so mature? _I wondered vaguely

"I-you...well, Kind of," I allowed, a little flustered. _You have no idea, missy. _The conversation lagged for a moment as I strained for something to say, but Lacus seemed perfectly content to examine me further, and I was a little surprised at how innocent, but frank her curiosity was. "I...I'd like to apologize." I latched onto the first thing I thought of, remembering back in the beginning of the series, Fllay had been horrible to Lacus-though, my arrival seemed to have skewed the dynamic slightly.

She smiled at me.

And what a smile, too. I warmed from the inside out, and in several ways I didn't even know I could get warm as she stunned me with a small, mysterious curve of her lips.

"It's all right. But I'm glad you've had a change of heart. If it's all right, would you come to my room, later?" She invited warmly. "I'd like to talk to you when you're feeling better, and I suspect I'll not be allowed to roam on my own much longer."

"...Uh. Y-Yes!" I blurted, blushing and cursing inwardly. All I needed now was to start stuttering again. "Yes, I will. Sorry."

"It's no trouble." She assured, giggling softly, then looking to Millaria. I looked, too, and Milly was staring at me, her lips parted slightly in shock. "Miss Haww, would you show me the way back to my room?" she asked politely. Milly looked to her and just nodded dumbly, standing up from the bed where she had been seated.

"Fllay...You-just, rest up, ok?" she instructed me finally, looking utterly at a loss.

I smiled faintly and nodded, though it was still way too weird to hear people calling me that. "I will. Don't worry about me," I responded.

"...Too late." The reply was soft, and faint, and obviously not meant for my ears, but I caught it. "Sleep well." She added, a little louder, leading Lacus to the door, the latter turning to wave and Millaira followed her example. I blinked, and hesitantly waved back, and apparently, that's what they wanted, as they slipped from the quarters after that... and suddenly, for the first time since I found myself here-wherever here is, I was alone.

I pressed the cloth against the aching bump on my head tightly, hissing as I stared blankly at the wall, not really thinking much of anything. I wasn't really certain what to do. Closing my eyes and trying to pretend that I'd wake up at home in bed was an attractive option, but if passing out and waking up with a lump on my head hadn't dispelled the notion that this was some sort of dream in a Coca-Cola and chocolate covered blueberries induced coma, nothing would.

Finally, after the heat from the pain in my head subsided somewhat, I slowly pushed myself up, sitting and swinging my legs over the bed, and standing carefully. I felt kind of silly smoothing out my dress-Fllay's dress-but I managed to put that out of my head at least, and I moved through the cabin, gingerly exploring as I looked for the bathroom.

Or perhaps 'head' was the right term? I was on a naval ship after all. I mean, I was, wasn't I? After the initial confusion, I wasn't certain, but this had to be _Archangel _right?

Pointless questions of that type swirled around in my head as I traced the walls, following them to the door Lacus had disappeared into, and stopped short. Apparently, I was in luck. (A relative term, if there ever was one.) The bathroom in this cabin was huge. A mirror, a sink, a shower stall, and-oops.

The bathroom lights came on as I entered, and cast the room into a pleasant, if slightly harsh glow, and illuminated everything. Though, what immediately caught my attention was the mirror. I had a reasonable idea of what to expect, but actually seeing it nearly made my heart stop. I walked closer to the mirror, hardly even blinking, staring at my reflection, and trying to will it back to normal. In the mirror image of the bathroom, everything was as you'd expect from a mirror...only I wasn't in it. At least, not as I'd come to know myself.

I stopped at the sink, staring hard at myself. Eyes. My eyes were grey. Kind of...pretty, really. The lashes were longer, and they were large and startled looking. A far cry from narrow green eyes, that was for sure. My face was smaller and younger looking, high cheekbones, and topped with the long red hair that seemed to get in my road every time I moved my head. I touched my face just to confirm, yes, it was definitely mine.

My eyes dropped lower, and I swallowed hard. Nervously, I glanced over my shoulder, then back at the mirror. Gingerly, I reached up, with the hands that were far too small, and began fiddling with the dark red buttons at the dress' shoulder. With a few minutes work, I'd sussed out how to undo the dress, and began to remove the garment, blushing as my gut clenched with worry that someone would catch me at this.

It only took moments to remove the dress. Again...I should have suspected what I'd find underneath, but it still took me by surprise to see it. No one would ever take me for a boy again. Even if I told them, they'd never believe me. Fllay-should I be saying 'I'?-was a knockout. Even for a girl in her mid teens, she had curves. Her legs-it was still too hard to think of them as mine-She had long legs, slipping up to flow into nicely proportioned hips and rear, though I didn't admire them as long as I should have. The utterly flat front of the lacy underwear was somewhat distressing.

"It's really gone..." I lamented in a near whimper as I reached down gingerly, and...

The feeling was hard to explain. Slow warmth in a flood that spread through me. I gasped, and my eyes slowly moved up to the mirror, and settled on the brightly pink bra covering my newly acquired bust. I watched it heave softly, as my breath had hastened with the sudden sensation. Dismay over my apparent loss shifted to a burning (And slightly perverted) curiosity. My face turned a deep crimson as I fumbled with my bra and panties, and ducking my head down, I scurried nervously into the shower, and quickly turned on the water.

I didn't come out for a LONG time.

---

I don't remember how long I was in the shower. When I finally stumbled out, weak-kneed and red faced, I barely glanced at the mirror. For right now, no matter what I saw there, being a girl was juuuuust fine. I was on a high that still had me shivering and grinning stupidly. I managed to dry myself off, though it was a clumsy process, and slightly painful. Note for the future: A girl's skin is FAR more sensitive than a guy's. Though this explained some things.

I didn't even bother getting dressed. I just stumbled over to what looked like a bed and collapsed onto it, feeling -wonderful- despite the bad day so far. There was a blanket, and I tugged it up to my chin and closed my eyes, drifting off to a surprisingly untroubled sleep.

I don't really know how long I slept. The next thing I knew, there was a pressure on my cheek. Not entirely unpleasant, but it was interrupting my sleep. Warm, and just a bit rough, the pressure was gentle, and not at all hurtful. I didn't like it, though. It was interrupting my sleep, and I couldn't stop it from pulling me out of unconsciousness. Irritably, I shifted, trying to get away, but it followed me, somehow, and there was a noise, dully echoing in the back of my head, and I squeezed my eyes shut, and-

"Fllay...Fllay...Fllay!"

My eyes snapped open.

Not an inch from my nose was a smiling face.

A smiling male face.

With short, sandy hair, and tinted oval glasses, and notably, breath that smelled like potatoes tickling my face.

I did not take this well.

"AAAAH!" I yelped, sitting bolt upright and scrambling away. Red hair flew wildly in all directions, and my blanket took it's leave as well, but I didn't have time to reflect on this. I scooted away until I banged into the wall, sharply. Pain took over surprise by force. "Owww!" I curled up defensively, long crimson hair falling in my eyes as I glared at the intruder into my sleep, placing a name to go with the face. "Sai!"

Said intruder had no ready response.

In fact, he had no response at all. His glasses had slipped down his nose, and he was staring at me...and his face was red?

I looked down.

My blanket had fallen to my waist.

I was unclothed, and newly female.

I was topless, and being leered at.

"...GET OUT!" I yelled, grabbing for the blanket and pulling it up to my neck and huddling underneath it.

He seemed to get his brain back at that, blushing even darker. "Wait...Wait! I had something to tell you! I didn't mean to scare you, Fllay." he stammered.

"You did a lot worse than scaring!" I snapped. _Dammit, if I had clothes on, I'd deck him so hard..._

_"_You're right. I'm sorry." Sai replied, hastily. Unfortunately, he sounded sincere enough, and took a great deal of momentum from my anger. "But really, Fllay. I have good news."

"This had better be -goooooood-" I drawled out, still curled up in a ball and glaring balefully at him from under the covers.

He nodded, smiling confidently down at me. "It is. A little while ago, we got a coded message from the 8th fleet. Admiral Halburton's come to find us, and your father's on board."

I stared at Sai vacantly. The news was good for Fllay, naturally, but I wasn't Fllay (Not REALLY)and-wait. I remembered this. Sai was supposed to tell me in the cafeteria-looking room, wasn't he? But no, I wasn't Fllay, and took a detour. He'd found me here, and... I gasped as his news jarred my memory loose, and a thousand images, all animated by Sunrise flashed through my head. _My father? This...Lacus...Raw Le Klueze...Ambush...Fllay snaps Oh my god...I couldn't play-Could I? _"What?" I breathed, my heart pounding.

"Well, He's coming in an advance party." Sai added, looking a little puzzled, but still smiling. "He didn't know you were here, but I sent them the civilian name list-"

"Sai!" I interrupted, scooting over to him-clutching the blanket higher against myself and glaring as I saw his eyes drop down. "Get me some clothes! I need to talk to Kira!" I ordered.

"You...Wait, what?" Clearly, of all the things I could have said, he hadn't prepared for that one.

"I said, get me clothes!" I exclaimed. "Or get out, so I can get dressed-Hey! Go get Kira and bring him here! There's not much time!" I bounced impatiently, and Sai still made no move, staring at me as if I'd gone crazy. Maybe I had...who knew? But this wasn't a cartoon. These were living breathing people interacting in front of me. If I was right, soon, a lot of people would die, if I said nothing...and I just couldn't abide that.

He still wasn't moving!_Ooo! Stupid Idiot! How would a real girl get what she wants?_ I opened my eyes wide, and held the bed sheet up over my chest and reached out to take his hand, my male ego weeping tears of defeat. "Sai...Please? It's really important," I offered, in my best earnest and pleading voice. I tried not to cringe as his hands nearly swallowed mine, but the effect was immediate, and dramatic.

He nodded dumbly and smiled a little. "I'll be right back."

I blinked at him, wondering what he was waiting for. _Sai seemed a lot cooler in the anime. What's he looking at me for-oh. _"Thank you, Sai." I added nicely. I probably should have smiled, but he was seriously creeping me out.

That got a smile, and he nodded and gave me a tiny half-salute and left the room. This, of course, left me with an even bigger problem.

"How the heck am I supposed to dress myself?"

---

Well, to make a long story short, I managed. With several miscues and the like-for example, even if you aren't particularly concerned with feminine appearance, a bra turns out to be a good idea. But I digress. Rather than trying to figure out which clothes were mine, and which were Milly's (She roomed with Fllay, right?) I grabbed the excessively pink outfit and recycled it, though Though, this would not stand. I felt stupid dressed like this even if it suited Fllay. I spent some time in the bathroom, combing my hair into order (Even if bed head on me looked kinda sexy...no, Bean, NO getting turned on by the mirror.)

I'd really thought that Sai would be back with Kira in the time it took me to get ready, but no, I was decent, and still no series hero to be found.

I paced the room as I waited. I was beginning to question the wisdom in my entirely instinctive reaction to try and 'fix' what had gone wrong in the Gundam SEED anime. _What do I know? Who's to say warnings and changes won't make things worse? _I stuck my finger in my mouth, chewing nervously. _On the other hand, If I do nothing, a LOT of people will die. People I could save. Including my...Fllay's father. Do I have the right NOT to try? It's not like I can just grab a Gundam and race out there. I have to hope that indirectly I can make a difference. Though, Maybe I can learn to pilot one?_

"Fllay?" The voice was sudden, soft, and entirely unexpected, making me jump.

"Gah!" I replied wittily. _What ever happened to knocking before entering a girl's room? Not that I am one. But Milly is! _I looked up, and two guys were in the doorway. Kira was in the lead-I recognized him from the infirmary, Sai on his heels. "Oh, good. I need to talk to you, Kira." I hesitated, and glanced at Sai. "In private."

"What?" He protested.

"I'm sorry." I repeated calmly. Or rather, I was trying to be calm. Sai wasn't looking very happy, and I was all too aware I hadn't much of a shot at defending myself right now. Fllay had spent her teen years on looking good, not fit. "I really need to talk to him about something"

"What can you possibly-"

"Something IMPORTANT." I insisted, cutting him off. I wasn't sure what his reasons were for getting upset, but if they had anything to do with me being (Technically) his fiancée, I didn't want to hear them. "-Please-, Sai!"

Kira looked over his shoulder at Sai and smiled, though for some reason, he looked uncomfortable. "Why don't you wait in the hall, Sai?" he suggested mildly, and Sai grimaced.

"Kira..." He didn't sound mollified in the least. I was starting to get angry.

"He's not going to molest me. YOU were the one who came in without knocking when I was naked." I accused, hoping he would take the hint. Both boys blushed furiously, Kira shooting him an amazed look, and that seemed to take the winds out of his sails.

"I'll be waiting outside." He growled, and stormed out, leaving Kira and I alone.

Kira looked a little worried about Sai's departure, but he wisely decided to leave it alone, and simply faced me, giving me his full attention. "What's wrong, Fllay?" he asked in hushed tones. I could relate to his discomfort. Hell, maybe more than relate...after all, I was the one in a dress-but no, I wasn't going to dwell on that. Really, I wasn't. Never mind that according to the series, I was supposed to have s-s-se...NO. Not going to happen. I shivered and shook my head, trying to put all that aside.

"All I ask is that you keep an open mind about what I'm going to tell you." I said finally, feeling queasy as the course I'd committed myself to loomed in front of me.

He smiled again, that odd little nervous half smile. "I'll try." he promised, and I wondered at his rather earnest tone. I didn't have the luxury of trying to figure him out, though...I had to get this all out in one go, or I'd start stuttering.

"Alright. It's like this..."

"No way." He declared, staring at me.

"Y-Yes way." I argued, trying not to squirm. The rather circumspect explanation of what was about to happen from my memories of the anime took about twenty minutes. His attention had barely flickered throughout my little monologue, and I found the intensity of the attention disconcerting, causing a flareup of my stuttering problem. I speak in a strange, rushed way, because I plan what I say on the fly, and my mouth has trouble keeping up. This results in a lot of cut-off words and stuttering when I speak quickly, and when I'm nervous, I talk faster, so it gets worse.

Luckily, I was still comprehensible, to judge from the incredulous looks he was giving me as I wrapped up.

"That can't be true." He insisted.

"It is."

"How do you know?"

"W-Why does that matter?" I objected. Kira looked at me a long moment, an uneasy expression on his face.

"It's a little hard to believe." He ventured, managing to look apologetic and dubious all at once.

"So you t-think I'm crazy." I retorted, a little bitterly. I was defensive, admittedly, as that might not have been too far from the truth. After all, I'd gone from an adult male to a fifteen year old girl in the space of several seconds.

"No!" Kira protested. He reached out and rested a hand on my shoulder. The contact made me shiver a little...it felt strange for a kid to be reassuring me like that. "I think it's just stress." he offered kindly, smiling a bit. "You've been through a lot since Heliopolis, Fllay."

I dropped my head so that he couldn't see my grind my teeth. I debated what I could say that would convince him, and discarded explaining my situation. After trying to convince him I knew what was going to happen in the future, and him declaring me simply stressed out, trying to explain that Fllay Alster had been replaced by Bean would get me locked up in a heartbeat. Inwardly I winced. I had no choice but to impersonate Fllay for the near future if I wasn't going to confess now. Thinking frantically, I shuffled through a dozen things I knew, none of which would-wait. There was one thing I knew that Fllay shouldn't, though actually saying it aloud shouldn't be taken lightly. Still, I was running out of time to sell him on the idea of taking me seriously.

"I know about Athrun." I blurted finally, the words coming out in a stumbling rush. It was almost comical to see his face freeze up in an exaggeratedly shocked expression. "Hey...Whoa. Kira, stay with me." I urged, reaching out and tugging on his shirt. He didn't react for a moment, which left me fighting the extremely inappropriate urge to smile.

In my defense, he looked pretty funny, though that thought drifted away as he finally spoke up, almost too quietly to hear.

"How...How do you..."

"You were friends in school, weren't you?" I pressed, hoping this would at least convince him there was something to what I was saying. "He built the bird for you. He wanted you to evacuate to PLANT with him, but it never seemed to work out. You both agreed you wanted nothing to do with the war, right?"

Kira was very expressive. A dozen emotions passed over his face in the space of a heartbeat. Those purple eyes looked so pained that I grabbed his hand, guilt over my stupidity crashing down on me like a falling piano.

"I'm sorry." I blurted. "I said too much-"

"It's true, all of it. I didn't want this. Why did it have to be him?" Kira whispered, staring at me.

"I don't know." I replied, guiltily. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said all that. I was trying to figure out how to get you to believe me, and I didn't think about you. It'll be okay, somehow." I tried, nervously. _Of course, you'll both nearly kill each other before you fix it, but...I can't exactly say that, can I? _

He didn't seem to hear, an achingly guilty look on his face. "I just wanted to protect you all." he murmured. "I didn't want to fight him."

"And you did a great job." I replied, earnestly trying to get that miserable look off of his face. "Really. He doesn't want to fight you, either, but-"

Kira just looked at me, and I felt terrible.

"Kira, look." I said finally. "I probably shouldn't tell you this. Athrun hasn't changed, all right? He's just, um...hurt. His mother died at Junius Seven, and he blames Naturals for it."

That at least got a reaction. Kira's eyes widened, and he pulled back, looking at me. REALLY looking, for the first time. But at least he didn't look catatonic anymore. "Fllay...how do you know all this?"

"I told you, Kira." I sighed. "I know what's going to happen, and I'm trying to stop things from going bad."

"It all sounds so...weird. I don't know what I should do," he murmured, looking confused, then pained. "I don't want to fight him anymore, Fllay." I was really beginning to get tired of being called that. He didn't wait for me to answer him, though. His chin dropped to his chest, his hair hiding his eyes from my view.

"But you can't just let him kill us, either?" I prodded hopefully, hoping he wouldn't pick up on my nervousness, and his head bobbed in an affirmative nod. "I can't make up your mind for you, Kira. I'm a little biased, anyway. We need you more than you need us-but no one blames you for any of this. No one important, anyway." _Why the hell do I have to play shrink? Oh, that's right. No one else can. Goddammit. _

He looked up at me, and...oh god, his eyes were watery."I don't know if I'm doing the right thing." he admitted. I shivered inwardly. I was on dangerous ground, here. If I screwed up, I might cost the _Archangel _her only chance at survival.

"Well...I know you don't want to fight." I offered, my voice lowered in deference to the mood that had formed, blinking as I realized I was still holding his hand. I let go of it, patting it instead. _How the hell does a kid get hands this big?_ "But if it helps...I don't think fighting to protect anything is a wasted effort. With great power comes great responsibility, and all that." I tried to smile at him, but it was hard with my stomach twisted in knots like this. _Still, hysteria MUST be looming for me to quote 'Spider-man' like that. _

"...Fllay..." he whispered.

I nearly panicked as his eyes began to water-but my instincts were cut off as he suddenly let go of my hand and grabbed me, hugging tight. I squeaked out something incomprehensible, and patted his back gingerly, my nerves nearly shot. _Being hugged-by boy-boobs flattening...eek! Mind shutdown alert I-_My thoughts were cut off by a sudden, angry shout.

"Let her go, Kira!" The interruption was not at all welcome as I would have thought. I stiffened, my skin crawling at the tone as I pulled back a little and Kira did too, and we both looked. Sai was standing in the entranceway, fist clenched, and radiating anger into the room. I looked at him, then looked at myself. Kira and I were intertwined in an intimate looking embrace-If my mind hadn't rebelled at the mere thought, I would have leapt to the same conclusion as Sai apparently had.

"Oh, shit."_How have I gone from saving the world to damsel in distress/adulteress in less than ten minutes?_ "Goddamnit..." I muttered. "This isn't what it looks like, and even if it was, it's none of your business!"

It is decidedly difficult to sound authoritative when you're being gripped by a teenage boy in a disturbingly possessive way, which Kira was doing now. I turned from Sai to glare at Kira, and he let go of me, his face red. Sai looked uncertain now, and I glared at him, too. "And you shut up." I hissed. "Kira's doing the best he can to keep us...alive..." I trailed off. I felt vaguely sick listening to my own words. I kept digging a deeper hole for myself. If I had been 'me', the phrase would have been completely innocent, and seen as such, but from a girl, all sorts of new, and unpleasant meanings were thrown in, even though I was trying so hard to avoid them. The LAST thing I wanted was a...a...

God, just THINKING the word 'boyfriend' made my skin crawl. Worse yet, I couldn't afford to alienate either of them. Kira's face was red, and Sai's was angry, and I was getting upset and confused. _What do I do? What do I do?_ "...Fuck!" I cried out.

Wrenching free from Kira, I stood and bolted like a frightened animal. A fairly strong argument could be made for this actually being the case, really. My heart was pounding, and my skin was hot-not pleasant at all. Still, my body was nearly ¾ the weight it had been, and I was able to flee with speed that even surprised me. But I put it to good use after the initial reaction, running from the quarters, fleeing down the hall, feeling only mild satisfaction from the startled looks both Kira and Sai gave me as I uttered the obscenity following me as I put as much distance between myself and those two as I could...

After a hard, intense run through a confusing maze of corridors, I slumped against the bulkhead, lightly thumping my head against the hard metal. I was pretty sure I was lost, completely and irrevocably. I dropped to my knees, and curled up defensively, hugging my knees and muttering swearwords.

"Stupid, Stupid, Stupid." I growled, listening to the soft, husky voice repeat my litany, a faintly hysterical feeling coming over me. "I even sound like... If she even exists. Or existed. Am I going to snap soon? I can't take this..." It occurred to me to wonder as I laughed, a strangely stressed out, mirthless sound.

It wasn't supposed to be like this. Was it? I'd seen anime fanfictions that were like this. Forewarn Kira what was going to happen-he'd save 'my' father, and relieve himself of a little of the grief he seemed to carry around, and maybe, just maybe, get us out of the mess that was coming up a little more cleanly.

He didn't believe me.

I couldn't blame him, I guess. Looking at it coldly, extremely objectively-He was a Mobile Suit pilot, and I...I was a hysterical teenage girl. My face burned a little as I looked at myself for the hundredth time since I'd landed here somehow. No doubt about it. I was pretty cute. Sort of. My reflection in the metal nearby looked plainly distressed. And when it came right down to it...I was now one of the most hated Gundam women ever. Leaving aside the involuntary womanhood, and the gundam part, I-

I'd never been this alone in my life. No one to talk to. Not even anyone on the internet. Alone, and depending on everyone, and I couldn't seem to change anything. They'd all come to hate me, soon...

My eyes stung. I could feel the hot tingling in them that heralded the onset of tears, but there was precious little I could do. I settled for resting my face on my bare knees, so at least if I did cry, No one would see. _This isn't how it's supposed to go, I'm supposed to be a male mobile suit pilot, and show Kira up in battle, and have any girl I want, not hiding from Kira and Sai in a corner..._

I tightened the little ball I was curled up in until my arms hurt from hugging my legs, images flickering past my eyes. Maybe I'd been too cold to Sai? I couldn't see what I could have changed, though. I wasn't about to cozy up to him, especially after him barging into my room...and if I was completely honest, after that hug, I was a little afraid that I could get in over my head very easily. I was in a really, really awkward position, as it stood. If I wasn't very, very careful about what I did, and when-well, I could get in a lot of trouble, very quickly. How did real girls...well, considering that I'd already taken the new equipment for a 'test drive', I should probably say 'humans born female', as there was no doubt I was 'real'.

I thumped my head against the wall lightly.

"God, what's WRONG with me?" I whimpered, embarrassed. I didn't really expect an answer. I didn't get one, either. At least, not directly.

"Is your head still bothering you?"

"Haro! Haro!"

The abrupt appearance of a little pink ball gaily poinging in the general area of my ankles, followed by Lacus' gentle tones took me by surprise, understandably.

"Hah?" I replied wittily, looking up. Sure enough, pink hair and a smile better suited to a young mother, or maybe a nurse than a fifteen year old.

"Is your head still bothering you?" She repeated as she approached, looking not at all impatient from my apparent denseness. I was still trying to figure out how to answer when she reached out and touched my hair.

It was a strangely intimate feeling. Her fingers probing through my hair felt nice. I winced a little as she found the lump, but she wasn't rough enough to make it painful. "...A little." I managed finally, pressing my hands against the bulkhead I was leaning on. "You know, they're going to get cranky if you keep letting yourself out like this."

"Oh? Why's that?" She asked, withdrawing her hands and looking at me not only with a perfectly straight face, but with such an innocently puzzled expression I had a hard time not laughing.

"...I have no earthly idea." I admitted, truthfully. It was hard to seriously consider Lacus as a spy without irony. The little Haro bouncing around my ankles finally stopped, and began rolling around and waving it's...flippers? What were those things, anyway?

"Hello! Hello! Are you fine today?" It chirped at me.

"Um, yes." I told it, blinking, and feeling silly. I knew it wasn't real, but it was so painfully earnest and cheerful, like a little kid, it was hard to ignore it.

"Yay! Yay!" Haro burbled, hopping over to roll around near Lacus feet.

She was smiling at me.

That almost stopped my heart, I swear to god. _How much is natural beauty, and how much is genetic? Or am I on the road to joining Blue Cosmos just for wondering? _That particular thought soured my mood a little. I always thought of myself as fairly openminded. But Lacus was-well, there was something almost disconcertingly appealing about her. It was enough to make you wonder, but then again, she was the first Coordinator I'd met. Well, Aside from Kira, but I seemed to be occupied whenever he was around. I was shaken out of my musing as I notice Lacus was talking to me.

"...I find myself talking to them, too." She admitted, warmly. "They're just toys, but they're so funny and cute, I can't help it. Can I, Pink-chan?" She added, looking down to the rotund...toy? Robot?

"I'm adorable!" Haro declared by way of reply, and the laugh that emerged in reply took me by surprise.

The release was just what seemed to be needed. The burst of mirth seemed to loosen something in my newly ample chest, and I was suddenly hit by a powerful surge of emotion. The laugh died a slow death in my throat, and I hugged myself, trying to brace against the surge of bitter tightness pushing up in my throat.

I struggled, trying to fight it, but for some reason, I couldn't surpress it this time. My eyes watered, and I scrubbed at them with my hands. _Oh hell no. Bean, you will NOT cry-You're a guy, guys don't do stuff like that, no matter what you look like now. What will Lacus think? Keep it together-! _

It was a supreme act of will, at least from my perspective, but I managed to avoid breaking down again as I tried to push the empty feeling away. Lacus was looking at me with mild alarm and concern. She'd moved closer while I wasn't paying attention, and she reached up, brushing my watery eyes with her fingertips. "What's the matter?" She asked, softly.

"Nuthin'." I mumbled, and punctuated that with an unfortunately timed sniff.

"You seem a little upset for only 'nothing'," She probed kindly.

I turned that over in my head. I didn't want to explain, but she wasn't stupid enough to buy my denials. "You wouldn't believe me." I replied finally, keeping my head slightly bowed.

"Try?" Lacus entreated softly. "I'd like to help you, Miss Allster."

The name was like a stab into an open wound, and fresh surge of pain screamed through me as I flinched. She was either empathic, or my face was an open book, because she looked instantly remorseful, or worse.

"I'm sorry." She murmured. "I don't know what I said, but I didn't mean-"

"It's not your fault." I interrupted, hoarsely. "It's just that that's not my name." My face got hot as blood rushed to it, and I wondered if I was blushing. A peculiar anxiety filled me as I accidentally committed myself. As expected, Lacus stared at me, her eyes filled with confusion. "But I heard them call you..."

"I told you you wouldn't believe me. It's a long story." I sniffled again, wiping my eyes harshly-until she took my hand. I looked at her in surprise.

"Please, tell me. All of it." The request was gentle, and her smile was friendly and kind. And with the feeling of utter isolation I was currently struggling with, I needed someone to talk to.

"...Okay." I replied in a small voice, caving in. If things were different here than in the anime, I was in deep trouble. She replied with a brilliant smile, not relinquishing my hand, just tugging on it to lead me back down the hall.

"Where are we going?" I wondered, nervously.

"Back to my accomodations." Lacus replied, reaching down as we walked. Haro chittered happily and lept into her hand as she straightened up. "You don't mind, do you?"

"I guess not." I murmured, watching Lacus as she walked beside me. Her hand wasn't as little as I would have expected. _I wonder if that's because mine is small now, too? _I followed her meekly, feeling oddly like a small child.

"So what is your name?"

"Huh?" I asked, taken by surprise. The question seemed to have come out of nowhere. She smiled at me again, and I could feel myself blushing, along with a few other feelings stirring in this soft, weird body I found myself inhabiting.

"Well, if you're not Fllay Allster...who are you?" She clarified, and I could FEEL myself blushing darker.

"Um. My friends all call me Bean." I replied, glancing away embarrassedly, then looking for her reaction out of the corner of my eye. I think what meant the most to me is that her smile never even wavered. She squeezed my hand lightly to get my attention, and I turned to her again, meekly.

"It's nice to meet you, Bean." She beamed. "My name is Lacus. Would you like to be friends?"

"..." _Just like that, she believes me? _I stared at Lacus, disbelieving. It was a corny line-or it would have been. She delivered it with such earnest seriousness that I mentally glossed over the oddity of the line, and went on to a more practical objection. "You barely know me!"

"I don't really know anyone here. Except Kira." She amended with a slight smile. "And I know you seemed sad, and a little lonely." She replied, reasonably. "I am too."

"...Oh."

"So we can be lonely together." She suggested, and her smile this time was a little different. I could see the loneliness in her face, and it finally occurred to me to wonder if maybe her kindness wasn't a 'business as usual' attitude, but a cover. She was far from home herself, and a potential POW in a war. I felt a little guilty, actually, when I looked at it from that point of view. I knew I'd never really considered resisting, but I suddenly felt better about the whole situation.

"I'd like that."


End file.
